Peters



(No Model.)` J. W. BLU-DGETI?- 3 Sheets-Sheet 1.

BUTTON HOLE ATTACHMENT FOR SEWING MACHINES.

N0. 366,616. Patented July 12,1887.

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(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 2. J. W. BLODGETT.

BUTTON HOLE ATTACHMENT EUR SEWING MACHINES.

Patented July 12, 1887.

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(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

J. W. BLODGETT.

BUTTON HOLE ATTACHMENT EOE SEWING MACHINES.

No. 366,616. Patented Ju1y12,1887.

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IINTTED STATES y PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN TV. BLODGETT, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO THE MOORE MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

BUTTON-HOLE ATTACHMENT FOR SEWING-MACHINES.

SPECIFICATION forming part o Letters Patent No. 356,616, dated July 12, 1887.

Serial No. 222,02l. (No model.)

Tf1-@ZZ whom, it may concern,.-

Be it known that I, JOHN NV. BLODGETT, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Automatic Button-Hole Attachments for Sewing-Ilachines, of which the following is a specification, to wit:

This invention relates to an improvement in automatic button-hole attachments for sewing-machines; and it consists in certain novel peculiarities ofthe construction and arrangement of the same, substantially as will be hereinafter` more fully set forth and claimed.

In order to enable others skilled in the art to which my invention appertains to make and use the same, I will now proceed to described its construction and operation, referring to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure lisa top plan view of my invention. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same. Fig. 3 is a transverse section upon the line a; w, Fig. 1; Fig. 4, a similar view upon the line w w, Fig. 1. Fig. 5 is a detail plan view of the bed-plate and the cloth-clamp. Fig. 6 is a longitudinal section upon the line y y, Fig. 1. Fig. 7 is a horizontal section upon the line zz, Fig. 2. Figs. S and 9 are detail views of the clutch-plaies. Figs. 10, 11, and 12 are end views of the clutch or shifting cylinder, showing different portions of its attach ments. Fi 13 is a view of the pitman for actuating the cloth-clamp, and Fig. 14 represents the wristpin used with this pitmau and the washer that is used with it. Figs. 15,16, and 17 are moditeations.

a representsV the bed-plate of my attachment, either provided or formed with a vertical part, a', upon which the shifting and oscillating mechanism is carried. Upon the bedplate is secured the cloth-clamp guide b, which consists of a Iiat plate formed with a transverse slot., b', as in Fig. 5, in which is abloek, b2, and a screw, b, passed through this block into the bed-plate, serves to confine the guide b in place without clamping it, so as to interfere with its motion. The outer side of this guide is U-shaped, being formed with up- 5o turned arms b", to serve as bearings for the shank of the cloth-clamp proper, as will be hereinafter describcd.` It is important that while the guide should be secured against any longitudinal motion upon the bed-plate it should yet be free to move laterally, as required in the operation of the machine, and by reference to Fig. 5 it will beat once noticed that while the boxing b2 fills the slot b in one direction, thus securing the guide against motion in that way; but in the opposite direction, or transversely of the bed-plate, the length of the slot gives the guide a freedom of movement, as will be evident. To properly retain the guide in position and aid its proper' operation, I place over it a springplate, b, held down by the retaining-screw b, as seen in Figs. 2 and 3.

The cloth clamp proper consists of two plates, c c', between which the material is firmly held, and by which it is moved. To the lower plate, e, is secured a shank, c2, which passes through and is freely moved in the upturned arms b* of the guide; and the upper plate, d, of the clamp is formed or provided with a spring-arm, c, which passes back over the other, and the spring-arm and shank are secured together at their rear ends, as in Fig.

2. This sninfr-arin acts to hold the n Tier l s lI plate away from the lower, and the two are pressed together by means of an eccentric lever, c, pivoted upon a short standard, ci,

rising from the shank ci, and bearing upon the spring-arm, as will be fully understood by reference to the drawings. The inner side of the cloth-clamp guide is provided with two studs, c a, one upon each side of the retaining-slot b', and for perfection 4of operation -each of these studs is provided with a small friction-roller, as illustrated.

Secured upon a suitable stud, d, projecting from the lface of the vertical part c ot' the bed-plate, is the oscillator-wl-icel d', which is formed upon its periphery with ayeamroove, d2, which engages the stud and roller a2 upon the guide, to give it and its cloth-clamp the oscillating motion necessary to the proper working of the edge of a button-hole. This oscillator-wheel is also lformed or provided with a series of ratchet-teeth, d, in order that it may be fed forward, and a stop-pawl, d,

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supported upon the part a of the bed-plate,

engages this ratchet to prevent any backward a ing-machine in the manner these attachments are usually operated. This lever e is provided with a pawl, c', to engage and feed forward the oscillator-wheel, and is extended in rear of its pivotal point and forked, as at c, one arm ofthe fork being provided with a thumb'serew, e, which is turned to project a longer or shorter distance within the fork, according to the conditions of the work in hand, and as will be more particularly explained hereinafter.

Upon a second stud, f, also secured in the part a of the bed-plate, is placed the feeding and shifting cylinderf, in which is formed a peripheral groove, f2, having two straight portions and two inclined or cam portions, f3, as shown. This groove engages and moves the stud and roller a upon the cloth-clamp guide to shift this guide and its clamp from side to side inthe proper working of first one side and then the other of the button-hole slit, the straight parts of the groove f holding the edges of the slit true and properly un-.

der the action of. the needle, and the inclined l portions of the groove serving to shift the slit from one side to the other at the ends. This l groove is sufficient, as des'cribed, for ordinary lg fits closely upon the cylinder, or ,upon a' buttoirholes; but in cases where an eyelet is to be worked at one or both ends of the slit I form the earn partof the groove (either one or both, as may be required) with a small depresson,f", at each end, as shown in Fig. 1, to accomplish this objec Upon the inner end of the feeding and shifting cylinder I place a friction feedingclutch, consisting of apair of plates, g g', both formed with a central opening, g. The plate shouldered part of the same, while the second plate, g', is either. made suiiiciently large or the cylinder turned down, as shown, so that the plate may have a free mot-ion without touching thecylinder, as will be'presently understood. These two plates are connected upon one side by a pin, g3, which is rigidly secured in the second plate, and passes loosely through the edge `of the central opening of the other, as in Figs. 7 and 9, and the pin is cut away upon one side, as shown, to exactly correspond with the opening through whose edge Yit passes. plates are connected by a pi-n or screw, 71 in the plate g', passing through a slot, It', in the other, and a spring, h2, is placed in saidslot to retain the plates normally in their proper position relative to each other, and to move them together in the backward stroke of the clutch. The second plate, g,'also projects' forward, as at 7i, between the prongs of the forked end e2 of thefmain operating-lever, as

Upon the other side the in Fig. 6, in order that this lever may move the clutch. When' the extended end of .the second plate, g', is depressed, the first action will be to turn they pin g3 tilll it pinches the cylinder firmly between itself and the opposite sideof the opening in the iirst plate, g, andthe two vplates and cylinder then move together to the end of the stroke. When the stroke is reversed, the initial movement releases the clutch, and then the spring h2 carries both plates back together, in readiness for a new feed. By a referenceto Fig. 6 it will be seen that this motion of the clutch is induced by one or the other of the prongs of the forked operating-lever, and that the eX- tent of stroke is easily regulated by means of the screw insaid fork, which is turned in or out, so that the operative contact o'f thelever and clutch shall occur sooner or later in the stroke of the main lever. tion it will vhe at once seen that the second plate, g', of the clutch is in reality only a lever for operating the clutch-pin, and need not necessarily beconstrncted, as is herein'shown, to complet-ely encircle the cylinder, but may take anyform found suitable or desirable.

As will be fully seen in Figs. 3, 7, l0, 11,/ and 12, the outer end of the feeding and shifting cylinder is formed with atransverse groove, t', in which I place a dovetailed slide, i,.pro vided with a set screw, i2, to secure it at any particular point in the groove. This slide is also formed with a'hole to receive the wristpin 7c, which is connected by a pitman, 7c', with the longitudinally-sliding cloth-clamp to feed it forward and back. of this clamp must be regulated to correspond with the length ofthe button-hole, the sliding vplate iis moved in its groove to throw the From this descripd IOO As the extent of feed wrist-'pin to or from the center of the feedingi cylinder, and this will be readily understood from the drawings.

Like all crankfand-pitman devices, the center of the stroke will be given a greater motion than its ends, and to obviate this I form the pitman with a square opening, k2, and

'make the wrist-pin, as in Fig. 14, in the form of a threesided cam, and it will be at once seen that this gives 4the pit-man a slight slip at the centerof the'stroke and asimilar slight acceleration at the ends as the points and sides of the cam wristpin are successively brought into play, and by this means the regular and even forward and backward stroke is insured, andan even stitch` is made, as will be at once understood. w y

A spring-washer, la, is placed over the end of the wrist-pin, and by its pressure upon the pitman prevents any possible slip'should the parts be worn.

In use this attachment is` secured upon a sewing-machine and its operatinglever engaged with the needle-screw, as usual. The

rise and fallof the needle-bar imparts motion to the operating-lever, and its pawl feeds the oscillator-wheel around the carngroove,

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which gives the proper vibrations to the clothclamp and moves the cloth beneath the ncedlc, so that the latter descends alternately through the cloth and past its edge, as usual. In effecting this it will be noticed that the cloth-clamp guide is Oscillated upon the rear stud and roller, which is held stationary by the straight portion of the grooved feeding and shifting cylinder. The operating-lever at the same time is operating the -clutch to feed this cylinder, and as it revolves its pitmau feeds the cloth-clamp backward and forward in its oscillating guide. At the proper time the cani portion of the grooved feeding and shifting cylinder operates the stud and roller to shift the guide and its cloth-clamp bodily over to bring the opposite side of the buttonhole under operation. It will be noticed that in this operation, and for this purpose only, the fulcrum of the guide-plate is shifted forward to the other stud and roller, and that each stud and roller acts as the fulcrum upon which the guide-plate is moved under the action ofthe opposite cam-cylinder, thus rendering the retaining screw through the slotted guide simply a preventive of longitudinal m0- tion.

It will be obvious that the particular form herein given to many of the parts is not arbitrary and may bc changed somewhat, as may be found desirable in practice under different conditions and for different work. Thus it will not alter the principle of myinvention in any way if the fork now represented upon the operating lever be reversed and placed upon the friction-clutch to embrace the end of the lever, and this is so obvious a change as to need no illustration.

I do not herein lay any broad'claims to the clutch shown and described, asIhave reserved this for a separate application for patent.

In Figs. 15 and 16 Iliave shown a modified form ofcloth-clamp,which is simpler and more economical than that before described, and it is the form I prefer to construct for that reason. In it the clamp proper consists ot' a flanged plate, m, sliding upon the guide, and

`having the spring-plate m secured to its for ward end and depressed to clamp the cloth by a cam and shaft, m2. The pitman k is also operated by a wrist-pin ofthe form before described, but in this instance secured or formed upon the face of a block, a, sliding in a dovetailed groove in the plate 21,.,secured over the end of the shifting and feeding cam-cylinder. A screw, a2, journaled in said plate serves to move the block to regulate thestroke. In thc same figures and Fig. 17 I also show a modified form of operating-lever having a curved slot, 0, engaging a pin on the frictionclutch. An adjustable stop-ammo', on the lever is set, as dcsired,to regulate the stroke of the clutch, and all these devices are exactly the same in principle as those before described.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. In a button-hole attachment for sewingmachincs,thecombination,with a cloth-clamp and a guide in which it is held and moved, provided with a pivotal stud or projection, and means, substantially as described, for automatically shifting this pivotal stud at the ends ofthe button-hole, of a cam-groovcd oscillator-wheel connected directly to the guideplate, and a connection between said wheel and the needle bar of a sewing machine, whereby the guide and clamp is oscllated upon its automat-ically-shifting pivot in properly working the button-hole, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

2. In a button-hole attachment for sewingmachines, the combination, with the clothclamp and its guide-plate and means, substantially such as described, for switching the samelaterally,of an oscillator-wheel connected to the needle-bar of the sewing-machine, andy a stud or roller upon the cloth-clamp guide for engaging the oscillator-wheel, and serving both to oscillate said guide and clamp and as a fulcrum upon which they are switched latA erally at the ends of the button-hole, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

In a button-hole attachment for sewingmachines, the combination, with the clothclamp and its guide and means, substantially as described, for oscillating them in making the overedge stitch, of a switching cani and means for feeding it forward, and a stud or roller upon the cloth-clamp guide Afor engaging said cam, whereby said stud or roller is made IOO to act both as a connection to switch the clamp and guide at the ends of the button-hole and as a fulcrum upon which they are oscillatedin overstitehing, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

4. In a button-hole attachment for sewingmachines, the combination, with the clothclamp, the guide-plate for the same, formed with a transverse guide-slot and having a retaining-screw passed through the same to hold it longitudinally, butpermita free lateral shifting, of a shifting-cam and an oscillator-cam connected directly to the cloth-clamp guide upon diametrically-opposite sides ofits retaining slot and screw, and means, substantially as described, for imparting an intermittent motion from the needle-bar of a sewing-machine to the two cams, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

5. In a buttonhole attachment for sewingmaehines, the combination, with the clothclamp and its guide-plate, the latter provided with a switching stud or roll, of a combined feeding and switching cylinder formed with a peripheral cam -groove for switching the guide and clamp by engagement with said stud or roll, and also provided with a wrist-pin on its end, and a pitman connecting this pin directly with the cloth-clamp for feeding it forward and backward in its guide, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

G. In a button-hole attachment for sewingmachines, thc combination, with a reciprocat- IIO ing cloth-clamp and a pitnnanv for moving the same, formed with a square opening in its driven end, ofafeeding-cylindcr provided with a wrist-pin formed triangular, with equal sides, whereby the feed of the pitman is equalized and the stitches evenly spaced, substantially as and for the purpose shown and described;

7. In a button-hole attachment for sewingmachines, the combination, 'with the clothelamp and its guide, a switching and feeding cylinder connected by a pitman with the clamp and formed with a peripheral cam-groove engaging a stud on the guide, and a main operating-lever for connection with the sewinginachne needle-bar, of a friction feedingicluteh composed of two parts, one ofwhich is closely fitted upon the cylinder and the other engaged with the operating-lever and connected to the iirst part by a clutch-pin, which rocks loosely in the edge of the opening which embraces the cylinder, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

8. In a button-hole attachment for sewingmaehines, the combination, with the clothclamp guide and its clamp, means for oscillating the same in forming the overedgestiteh, a cam-grooved cylinder for shifting the clamp and guide at the ends of the button-hole, and a clutch upon said cylinder having Vone arm extended, of a main operating-lever provided with a pawl for operating the oscillator-wheel,

lator-can1 and the switching and feeding cam,

the cloth-clamp sliding in said guide plate, and-the pitman connecting it with the feedingcylinder, substantially as and for the purpose set forth. l

In testimony whereof I aflix presence of two witnesses.

JOHN WV; BLODGET'I.

my signature in Witnesses:

IV. C. MCARTHUR, W. S. MCARTHUR. 

